Teachers Deserve More. While many say that a child’s greatest (or worst) education is at home, teachers mean the world to our families and our children. Despite fatigue, stress, wear, tear and premature aging, they relentlessly do their best to educate our children. It’s fair to say they do a great job, but when their health suffers, so does the community at large. My wife is a teacher. My father taught for over 40 years. My mother was a teacher. I was and am lucky enough to have teachers at home and at school. Not all kids are so lucky. The health of our children’s teachers directly impacts our homes and our communities. They deserve more. The four most important things in life are on the other side of this link. If you are a teacher, you are on vacation this week. Even though many of you are catching up on school work, it’s still a rest from bending over, looking downward and hunching over students. Hopefully, you have a break from grading papers, the stress of children’s issues, a break from over concerned parents and juggling your own life at home with your life at school. Do you...

Reduce your potential risk of an emergency c-section. Pain is your body’s way of alerting you of a problem. Some problems make labor and delivery even more difficult, which in turn leads to “fetal distress” at which point the doctor will order a c-section so that your baby is not “damaged.” Pelvis and low back pain, like all other warning signs, have causes. Some of these causes lead to dystocia, or difficult labor and delivery. “Dystocia” or abnormal progress in labor is a common problem that is being looked at more closely as the incidence of C-Sections at some hospitals in the United States approaches 100%. Dystocia is also loosely defined as failure to progress during labor, lack of progressive cervical dilation or lack of fetal descent. Before we look at the three most common causes of dystocia, lear about CPD and “abnormal progress”, both of which are common reasons that doctors give for the need for c-section. In many circles, CPD and “abnormal progress” are not legitimate reasons to have a c-section, ultimately it’s the parents’ call. Cephalopelvic distortion (CPD) is often blamed for dystocia and the need for a c-cection. CPD is a situation where the baby’s...

2 a.m. mom’s know who they are. ARE YOU A “2 a.m. MOM?” A 2 a.m. mom is one who is up at 2 a.m. because of a child. If you are reading this, you are a great parent. You may be up worrying or you may be up because the child is up and needs you. Either way, at some point during the night, your stress is heightened and your worry soars. Your mind races, longs for answers, you want to sleep but your child is more important than rest. If nothing else is certain about Sensory processing disorders, ADHD, Autism Spectrum Disorders (ASD) and the rest of the growing neurological disorders in children, one thing is for sure. They have strong and undeniable neurological components. The question is, what is the rest of the equation? What caused the nervous system to change? In an article published in the journal “Frontiers In Integrative Neuroscience,” in 2009, findings point to a host of potential contributors to Sensory Processing Disorders (SPD) and children with both ASD and SPD. Many studies have shown that there may multiple causes, making the hunt for a single cause, all that more elusive. Many of...

Chiropractic may help your ADHD child. Have you been told that your child has ADD or ADHD? We help children with ADHD. Here’s how. There is growing medical evidence that chiropractic adjustments directly impact the parts of the brain related to mood, social interactions, attention, focus, self regulation, organization of thoughts, cause and effect, and a number of other functions and processes that are not considered normal in children with ADHD, even Autism Spectrum Disorders. Parents, here’s the science behind it. In 2016, in the journal Annals of Neuroscience, a study was published showing that the part of the nervous system that is disrupted in kids with ADHD is quantifiably dysfunctional. This is the autonomic nervous system. “The autonomic nervous system plays a vital role in attention, self regulation, emotional stability and social affiliation, which are affected in ADHD. The prefrontal cortex, which is vital for attention, motor control, emotional regulation and higher order autonomic control, is hypo (less) functional in ADHD.” (Link to the research) Also in 2016, in the journal Neural Plasticity, research was published on the effect of chiropractic adjustments and the the effect on sensory motor integration in the prefrontal cortex. The results showed a direct...

Ever feel like there’s no time to take care of yourself, mom? Meet Julie… As a mom, you’re like an athlete playing several professional sports, and you probably feel like you need to take better care of yourself but you don’t know where to start. You never seem to have enough time, there are a million things that get in the way. Lessons, kids, family, work, cooking, groceries, meetings, friends, illnesses, cleaning if there’s time leftover. There will always be something that could be used as an excuse to not do what’s best for you, until you wrap your head around making real change. There are a couple steps to this process: Change your beliefs – the way you think or feel about why and how you need to make the change. When it comes to health, it’s remembering that there’s hope for improvement. You can always improve. You just have to want it bad enough and believe you can do it, then put in the time and effort. Which isn’t always “a ton” of work. If you don’t believe you can do it, it’s going to be tough to make it happen, though. Change your behavior – implement...

Avoid disaster by removing access to these top choking hazards for babies. The last thing any parent wants to be faced with is a child who’s life is being threatened. Choking is one of the leading causes of unintentional death for infants. Every responsible parent should lower the risk of injury or death by removing hazardous items and feeding their children lower risk foods. Being prepared to help a choking infant by following the instructions as written by the National Safety Council: Support the infant face down by holding the head in one hand with the torso on your forearm against your thigh Give up to five back slaps between the shoulder blades with the heel of your other hand If the object is not expelled, roll the infant face up, supporting the back of the infant’s head with your hand Place two fingers on the breastbone just below the nipple line Give five chest thrusts about one per second about 1 ½ inches deep Continue cycles of five back slaps and five chest thrusts until the object is expelled or the infant becomes unresponsive If the infant becomes unresponsive or is found unresponsive, begin CPR The items...

Is your baby suffering from Colic? The exact cause of colic is still considered unknown, probably due to multiple factors contributing to the problem. Most sources suggest the following may be involved: Diaphragmatic tension Nerve irritation Abdominal tension Gas Reflux & Indigestion Back spasm The Baby Bowen Technique has been used safely and effectively for years by healthcare professionals and parents around the world. “Baby Bowen” addresses the issues listed above in a way that is tolerated by infants easily. It is quick and often results in immediate resolution of infantile colic. Below is a tutorial on how it is performed. If you are not comfortable performing this technique on your own, or if it doesn’t seem to be working, you should call us and we can help. The technique is extremely gentle. It is extremely efficient (takes only 3-5 minutes). Everyone feels better when your baby feels better! Dr. Lou is a perinatal and pediatric chiropractic specialist in Portland, Maine. He has used “baby bowen” for years and has an incredible success rate. For more information and videos, visit us on YOUTUBE. We also encourage you to have a look at our GOOGLE REVIEWS. ...

Cyclic Vomiting Syndrome (CVS) in a young boy. Cyclic Vomiting Syndrome is a disorder that can affect people of any age. According to the CVS Association, it was discovered in in 1882 by Dr. S. Gee. CVS is distinguished by recurrent bouts of nausea, vomiting and lethargy. Vomiting can last for hours or days and then things return to normal until the next episode. Making it difficult to diagnose is the confusion with a viral bug or flu, or some kind of food poisoning. Frequency and duration of unstoppable vomiting though are curious signs and should absolutely warrant a trip to the doctor. What does chiropractic have to do with Cyclic Vomiting Syndrome? Well, CVS is, if nothing else, an issue of poor regulation and control over the upper digestive tract. All people have brains that control the regulation and function of the body. If there is interference in communication from the brain to the body (upper GI tract), then the upper GI tract won’t work properly. Interference in communication often happens in the following ways: Physical trauma leading to misaligned vertebrae or cranial position on the spine. In infants this can stem from a traumatic birth or sleep position. Mental...

Parenting In Pain Hurts Everyone. We’ve all had moments where back pain, headache, neck pain, knee pain, shoulder pain, sciatica pain or some other ache has prevented us from the Saturday morning LEGO party on the living room floor. Maybe you can’t pick up your kid because of one of the aforementioned pains. If you can’t play with your kids, odds are, you are thinking “I’m too young for this.” There are many causes of headaches, joint pain, sciatica, muscle pain, stiffness and the like. They all fall under the “Neuro-Musculo-Skeletal” umbrella, which is the chiropractors domain. Why not go to your PCP? Maybe you should. Recognize though that when all you have is a hammer, all you will see is a nail. IF you are looking for non-surgical, drug free solutions to painful parenting problems that are preventing you from playing with or holding your kids, chiropractic may be your answer. It’s proven safe and effective. In fact, chiropractic is statistically safer than driving to Shaws for popsicles. Here’s a story about a painful parenting incident at LL BEAN on December 2, 2016. ...

When To Call A Pediatric Chiropractor. Pediatric chiropractic treatment has been around for a long time. Chiropractors have been evaluating and gently adjusting children since the turn of the 20th century. It wasn’t until the formation of the ICPA however that the profession had an organization representing the welfare of mothers and children. “The International Chiropractic Pediatric Association (ICPA, Inc) is the profession’s oldest, largest and most sought out chiropractic pediatric association. The ICPA was founded by Larry Webster, D.C. in 1986. His vision and passion in working with children had a major impact in redirecting the profession to care for more children.” The key to finding a great and highly qualified pediatric chiropractor is to look for one trained by the ICPA. A fully trained ICPA doctor and local chiropractor is going to be most qualified to work with you and your children. A pediatric chiropractor evaluates your child as gently as a medical pediatrician but without the needles. A thorough evaluation of a child’s nervous system, spinal and pelvic alignment, reflexes, muscle tone, head shape, sensory processing and a host of other, primarily nerve based, tests will be done if indicated. The exam is gentle, involves no...